While assessing Australia’s options, Ponting also cast an eye on England’s likely XI, pointing to their No.3 dilemma and highlighting Ben Stokes’ fitness as a decisive factor.
“The difference with the two teams is you can probably pick England’s team right now and you probably can’t pick ours.
“There’s only one chink in their armour, and that’s Ollie Pope at No.3. They’ve got young Jacob Bethell who has batted at three for them in the past, that’s one change they could make.
“Ben Stokes is the pivotal one for me, if he’s fit and bowling like I saw him bowling against India, then their whole side looks completely different. He’s probably their best bowler to be honest, he’s got his pace back, he’s fitter than he’s been.
“He’s given up the drink, and he’s really focused on being a long-term all-rounder for England, for as long as he can. If Stokes is fit, if Wood and Archer are, in fact, fit, they will have a really strong attack that will definitely be causing the Aussies a few nervous moments.”
In England’s recently concluded Test series draw against India, skipper Stokes stood out with the ball, often bowling long spells to provide crucial breakthroughs. He finished the series with 17 wickets across four games and will once again look to bring his best foot forward come November.
The first Ashes Test is set to begin on November 21 in Perth.